4 YEARS - This is the average duration for the creation and launch of a new perfume.
Why is it so long? Here is a summary of the creation process:
1. The concept (name, universe, the perfect idea that will make people dream)
Example: Create the new feminine perfume for young women in search of femininity, with a very pink universe and we will call it "Rose en fleurs du mois de Mai"
2. The perfumers' brief (olfactory family, target, ingredients, etc.)
And yes, with the exception of a few big luxury houses (Chanel, Hermès, Dior, Guerlain, Cartier...) which have in-house perfumers, the other brands call on composition companies to create their perfumes.
There are several types of companies: Givaudan / IFF / Firmenich (leaders), Symrise / Mane / Robertet / Takasago (specialized in the niche, in the natural...) and independents like Flair, Maelstrom.
Some give carte blanche to the perfumers, others make very detailed briefs with their expectations.
Example: "Mystique" VS "A fruity floral because it is the trend of the moment, with the most beautiful variety of Rose. The target audience is 18-25 years old. We want a 15% concentrated eau de parfum with a price of 80€ / kilo."
3. Test your perfume (consumer tests)
Perfume is above all a business story. Brands strive to create beautiful stories, beautiful universes to make people dream, but the ultimate goal is to sell.
Exit naivety, the majority of perfumes on the market are tested, re-worked and re-tested in different countries / strategic cities, in order to reach the widest possible target: you, your mother, your sister, your friends. , your grandmother and tutti quanti.
One of the most famous perfumes, in the shape of a star, required more than 694 tests before it was put on the market. Given its success, OK, it was worth it.
4. Storytelling
Storytelling is the story told around a perfume: the life of the creator, his olfactory memories, his ideas. Everything is meticulously established to make you want to, to sell you the dream, this famous part of dream that makes us belong to another world.
5. The 360 mix
By mix 360 we mean:
- Advertising: Press, Media, TV, Street marketing
- Digital / Com: Website, Influence, Social Networks, Events
- Packagings: Gift With Purchase, case, bottle, boxes
- Retail: Boutique / Pop-up, Layout of points of sale
- Operational: Establishment in strategic countries
6. Regulations
All cosmetic products are tested and strictly controlled before being placed on the market by the European Cosmetics Regulations and the IFRA (International Fragrance Association)
Toxicity, stability, Product Information File, nothing is set aside to ensure complete consumer safety.
The tests last between 3 and 6 months (the major brands have their own R&D department). Although all perfumers formulate in accordance with the IFRA constraints / recommendations, the regulations may refuse a formula if it does not comply.
The price for the "regulation package" is around 1500€ per reference. A big investment for budding brands.
- How do brands, throughout this process, continue to "live"?
To ensure their image and their margins, the brands then launch Limited Editions ( often during the summer period ) or Flankers ( variations of variations of the original perfume ) to meet this expectation.
Then appear: Water, Absolute, Essence, Nectar, Intense, Gold, In Joy, EDT / EDP / Parfum…
These perfumes, which are built around the original scent of the perfume, are granted a slight olfactory variation, which can then claim to be considered a new launch while the juice remains almost the same.
- Results ?
Shake this cocktail = Standardized, cloned launches and extended product catalogs .
We are witnessing a real Collective Olfactory Standardization, where the overall budget of a brand is essentially focused on advertisements and the media.
In the era of singularity, it seemed essential to us to free ourselves from the classic and institutional process whose objective is to please everyone.
At VERSATILE, we do not carry out consumer tests, our perfumes are developed in less than 6 months.
Each launch is a one-shot, unique, with original, modern and non-gendered olfactory biases.
Photo: VERSATILE PARIS
